Château ( Castle ) de Quéribus, France

The Château de Quéribus is a medieval castle located in the the commune of Cucugnan in the Aude département of France. The castle is first mentioned in 1020 in the testament of Bernard Taillefer and is often regarded also as the last Cathar stronghold. During the Albigensian Crusade (1209–1229) many persecuted Cathars found shelter in the Château de Quéribus which fell into French hands in 1255 as the last of the Cathar strongholds.



The castle played an important role later as one of the "Five Sons of Carcassonne" or five castles which defended the border between France and Spain. After 1659 when France and Spain signed the Treaty of the Pyrenees which fixed the border between France and Spain at the Pyrenees the Château de Quéribus lost its former strategic importance and began to decline. In 1907 was the Château de Quéribus classified as a monument historique and went through extensive restoration in the second half of 20th century.